UMFHA is moving over to a new system to manage release documents. How will this system effect you and what benefits will it bring? Please read on to find out.

Contents of this document

• What is the Release Document?

• How is the Release Document generated?

• Why the Release Document is important to the license

holder

• Ensuring quality via the Release Document process

• How is a Release Document generated?

• Overview

• Detail

• What happens when product is contract packed or sold to

another UMFHA license holder?

• The benefits

• Levies

• Contact details

What is the Release Document?

The release document, otherwise known as the UMF™ Certificate, is a document generated based on test results from an UMFHA approved lab to show that a batch of honey meets the UMF™ quality assurance and rating system. Every batch of honey that is labelled with the UMF™ quality assurance and rating system must have a Release Document*

Why the release document is important to the license holder

We’ve taken a moment to look at what license holders need from the UMF™ release document Why the release document is important to the license holder

• Traceability – A UMF™ Certificate (release document) gives proof for each batch of honey that the honey has been tested and meets the UMFHA quality standards. Every batch of honey requires a release document.

• True to label – the release document shows that at the time the processing was completed, the finished product was true to the UMF™ rating on the honey label.

• True to label – the release document shows that at the time the processing was completed, the finished product was true to the UMF™ rating on the honey label.

• Many license holders prefer the release document to show their name instead of the name of their contract packer or supplier.

• Accessibility – License holders need easy access to their release documents.

• License holders need the high standard of UMF™ quality maintained while still allowing time for their internal processes.

• Independently tested – the certificate can be used to show that the batch of honey has been independently tested.

• Advance on the quality position of the UMF™ quality assurance and rating system.

Ensuring quality via the Release Document Process

The UMF™ quality assurance and rating system is known worldwide for high quality Mānuka honey from New Zealand. Our goal is to maintain and enhance the standard and value of the UMF™ quality assurance and rating system, the release document for each batch of honey is essential to demonstrate this.

One Representative Sample

To ensure quality assurance, one representative sample of the batch (final product) is to be submitted for the release document. The test results are to be taken from final product and not from multiple samples. The new system now supports this quality standard by accepting test results from one sample per batch per license holder. If you are a contract packer, please keep reading.

Traceability

The release document needs to be traceable right back to where the product is packed and the license number on the label needs to match the license number on the release document. The new system will provide an avenue to provide this traceability. Please see the process on page 8.

Quality

Good quality assurance means the release document is to be requested at the time the final product is tested. However, based on advice from the laboratories, the test results will not significantly change within 12 weeks. Hence, license holders have 12 weeks to request a release document from test results.

How is the Release Document Generated?

The overview

How is the Release Document Generated?

The details

What if I’m a contract packer or selling product to another license holder?

The name of the release document needs to be generated in the name of the license holder whose brand is on the jar of honey. To accommodate this, the below process can be followed.

NB: All parties using the UMF™ quality mark must be UMFHA License Holders.

The contract packer will email release.documents@umf.org.nz advising:

• The number of the license holder for whom the product has been packed for

• The batch number

• UMF™ quality assurance and rating system

• Quantity (kg)

• Release document number

The benefits

Below are just some of the benefits to the license holder, the labs and the UMFHA

How will levy invoices be affected?

As per the license agreement, (please refer to clause 10) it is the responsibility of each license holder to declare the amount of product sold each quarter.

The way the levy information is collected has also been updated. Instead of filling out a proforma invoice, each quarter, the total product sold is requested from each License Holder. Beginning the quarter ending 30 September 2021, the declaration of product sold in the previous quarter will be requested from each license holder in the form of a spreadsheet (csv) file. There will be one spreadsheet (csv) file per License Holder.

Please see an example of this spreadsheet layout below.

Contact details

Please add the below email addresses to your contacts so that release documents and other important information is not lost or marked as spam.

«We are looking at moving over to the new system 1 August 2021 and will be in touch again to provide a ‘go live’ date and further information»

THANK YOU

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact Kirsty kirsty.jones@umf.org.nz